NORTHRIDGE, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton applied pressure and peppered the CSUN defense with shots from the outset of Friday night's Big West Conference match, but at the end of the night the Titans could not find the back of the net as they fell 1-0 to the Matadors at Matador Soccer Field.
"This is a very tough loss for our group in regards that we played a great game," said Titans head coach Demian Brown. "We played a very good CSUN team; a senior laden team that had a lot of experience and for our women to come out and play the way they did here is a very good game for us. Obviously the loss hurts but we go home now and get ready for a very big game on Sunday, our senior day, with an opportunity to secure our place in the Big West Tournament."
The Titans (7-10, 4-3) outshot the Matadors (10-4-5, 5-1-1) 12-10 on the night including a 6-5 edge in shots on target but CSUN goalkeeper Jovani McCaskill turned away every Fullerton opportunity and got some key blocks from her defense to blank the Titans.
Jennifer Stuart took the loss for Fullerton despite a solid night in net herself, making four saves. Maribell Morales led the offense with two shots on target while Connie Caliz, Nano Oronoz and Ivy Diego each had one.
The Matadors took a 1-0 lead in the 32nd minute off a free kick. Kourtney Kutscher sent the kick into the box where her sister, Lindsay Kutscher, shook off her defender and got her right foot on the ball to redirect it in the back of the net at the near post for what would be the only goal of the match.
The Titans didn't fall for lack of trying as they came out in the second half and got three shots on target within the first five minutes of the second half. The Titans would outshoot the Matadors 9-5 in the final 45 minutes but could not find the back of the net.
"I thought the way that we ran at them, the way that we played and possessed the ball in the second half is a great reflection of who we are and it took a very good, a very mature and senior-laden CSUN team to stop us," Brown said.
With the win, the Matadors clinched a spot in the Big West Conference tournament along with UC Irvine, who defeated Hawai'i 2-1 to clinch a spot. Both teams remain tied for first in the standings.
The Titans loss puts them into a tie for third place with Long Beach State with 12 points apiece, two ahead of fifth place UC Davis, which won its match at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday.
A win for Fullerton on Sunday against UC Irvine will clinch the third seed in next week's Big West Conference tournament. The 49ers face UCSB Sunday and UC Davis takes on Cal Poly in the final match of the regular season.
Sunday will also be the Titans senior day as the team will honor Ali White, Ivy Diego, Tatiana Rizzotti with a pregame ceremony at Titan Stadium.